Gothel (The Pilot)
Mother Gothel (also known as the Matrix) was a wicked witch who, while residing in London, was originally from the Viking Enchanted Forest village of Dunkelheit. Originally the High Priestess of the Cult of Hel, Gothel conspired to bring Hel back and begin Ragnarok. Gothel knew Zelena from a past dealing, and was shady and kept herself hidden. She formed the Collect to investigate temporal and magical threats before meeting an untimely death at her daughter Rapunzel's hands. Mother Gothel is based on the character of the same name from the Disney film, Tangled. Bio Plot to start Ragnarok Gothel was the high priestess in Dunkelheit, and led the Cult of Hel, a cult conspiring to bring back the goddess Hel and assist in bringing about Ragnarok. Gothel's best friend was Dahlia, who did not affiliate herself with Gothel's cult. While plotting the rise of Hel, Gothel was visited by Odin, who warned her not to unleash Hel, but she refused. She also met the trickster god Loki, striking up an alliance with him. At some point in time, Gothel and her cult exerted enough psychic energy to bring Hel out of the Underworld with the assistance of Loki. Gothel, eager to prove herself, asked Hel how she could help her bring Ragnarok. Hel first tested her, instructing her to kill her best friend Dahlia. Gothel was not reluctant in carrying out these instructions, killing Dahlia. Hel granted Gothel with magic and directions to a Gullflower. After her meeting with Hel, she continued meeting with Loki, and eventually, the pair fell in love and Loki elected to stay in Dunkelheit with Gothel. Gothel and Loki consummated their relationship, producing a daughter, Rapunzel. Initially, Gothel loved her daughter, planning to one day initiate her into her cult. After Loki was forced to return to Asgard, Gothel was heartbroken and imprisoned Rapunzel in a small cottage, no longer willing to have a remembrance of the man she loved. Evil works Gothel used the Gullflower to keep herself young, (TV: Mother's Day, ''PROSE: [[Mother's Day (Target novelisation)|''Mother's Day]]) and kidnapped Zelena from Bookend, erasing her memories of her past and fooling her into thinking she was Rapunzel. Gothel siphoned off of Zelena's magic, stealing it over time for rituals to bring Hel back. Eventually, Zelena caught on to Gothel's villainy, and caught her red-handed. Zelena regained her memories and stole her magic back from Gothel. By this time, Gothel had started going by Mother Gothel to distract people from her true identity. After Zelena escaped, Gothel took her memories from her time in the tower and placed them inside Rapunzel, who she then imprisoned in her tower. She used her title as mother to abuse Rapunzel. (TV: ''Matrix Rising'') At some point in time, Gothel earned the title of mother, known to some, including Mother Sin and Stromboli, as Mother Gothel. (TV: Sacrifices) Gothel brought the famous "Jack the Ripper" to Enchanted Forest, and was the first to discover the secret that Jack the Ripper was two people, siblings Jacqueline and Jack Woods. Gothel saved them from a police investigation and left them in Wintershoal. (TV: ''The House That Jack Built'') As a cover for spying on Zelena, Gothel formed the mysterious Collect, dedicated to tracking down magical and temporal threats. Gothel was called the Matrix, and only met with the Collect's higher-ups. (TV: Matrix Rising) Gothel had dealings with Pleasure Island, and worked with Stromboli to keep its denizens under his control. She originally supplied him with the Pleasure Lotuses, and provided him with magic that would allow him to enslave the Lotus Eaters. (TV: Losers Weep) Conflicts with Zelena Though she tended to remain secretive, there were, however, times when she was not careful, including the time after Zelena's awakening. Gothel visited him, not counting on the fact that two others in the city, Gabriel and Dash seemed to recognise him though he did not recognise them. Gothel used her magic to dilute the Witch's magic potion, preventing it from restoring Zelena's memories. Gothel later killed Dr Media, the doctor in charge of Zelena. (TV: ''The Pilot'') Gothel investigated Zelena's travels, and discovered that he was travelling to Eden. Determined to stop Zelena from changing the laws of time, Gothel travelled back in time to stop her. In order to do so, Gothel went to the Collect headquarters, where she killed Marc after torturing him for information about the Collect. Gothel used time travel technology, infused with Marc's blood, to travel back to Eden. There, Gothel entered an alliance with Mother Sin to tempt Cain into killing Abel. Later, Gothel gave a threat to Belle and Zelena, warning them that she was more powerful than they could ever imagine. (TV: Sacrifices) Gothel summoned Hel, and with her, did battle with the heroes; they, however, lost when Zelena incapacitated Hel with a shard of the Evil Queen's magic mirror. (TV: Mother's Day) Gothel visited a group of Water Nymphs in a 1980s New York band called AquaART and restored their powers as water nymphs. (TV: ''That 80s Feeling'') Mother Gothel summoned Demogorgons in 1660s England, using them to spread the Black Plague more in hopes she could change the course of human history. Zelena, knowing that this would cause a paradox, travelled back in time with his companions to stop her. Though the Demogorgons caused much damaged, Gothel was able to cause damage, though not to the timeline. She was stopped, and Zelena banished her back to 2047. (TV: Black Death) Gothel continued interfering with Zelena's timeline, instigating heretics in Dis to call out for him (TV: ''Karma Bites'') and making a pact with Ursula, a witch from the Wish Realm. (TV: Under the Sea) She also formed a diner that was cross-dimensional (between the Real World and World-X, with portals to various different worlds and times, including Bookend.) From there, Gothel was able to summon past villains faced by Zelena and his companions. (TV: ''The Portals of Light'') Death Gothel took the battle against Zelena to the town of Bookend. There, she and her allies encountered Zelena and the heroes he was aligned with, an army which included two of Zelena's prior incarnations. She was defeated by Rapunzel, who discovered her true past and killed her mother. (TV: Matrix Rising, Into the Light) Resurfacing in Bookend As part of Daphne West and Raven Thorne's plan to destroy Bookend with the power of witches, Gothel, along with Izika, Tia Dalma, and Grace, is summoned to Bookend. Gothel is initially hesitant to join with the plans of the witches, but Tia Dalma explains that by destroying Bookend, Gothel will be able to partake in revenge against Zelena. Grace then tells Gothel that they will be joining forces to find the Sword of Destiny. Gothel is briefly able to take it from England, who challenges her to a magical duel for the Sword of Destiny. That night on Main Street, Gothel meets England, and the pair begin their duel. Gothel uses her magical prowess to pose a considerable threat to the nation, but England manages to beat Gothel, ending her life again with the Sword. (TV: ''Send Me Never Demigod'') Legacy Gothel was mentioned by Zelena to be the latest enemy defeated. (TV: ''You Better Watch Out'') Personality Relentless and cruel, Mother Gothel proved to be a particularly dangerous enemy. She was not above murdering to further her goals. Zelena described her as "a murderer of the highest degree" and "worse than the previous Mother Gothel I faced". Gothel's cruelty made her the perfect partner for Mother Sin, who was among the original primordial evil entities and considered her to be more evil. Sadistic, Mother Gothel employed various methods of torture to extract information from Marc. She was also mercilessly ambitious; this was made evident when she killed her only friend Dahlia to gain the favor of Hel. After the heartbreak suffered from the departure of Loki, Gothel became cold-hearted and closed off to love. Trivia Character Notes * According to Gothel, the term "mother" refers to an event in her past. ** This is later revealed to be a cover to keep people from suspecting her of evildoing while imprisoning Rapunzel. Casting Call * The casting call for Gothel describes her as: A cruel witch who believes that mercy should only be given to those who deserve it. Cold, calculating, and patient, she has the ability to wait for her plans to come into fruition. She becomes the main antagonist of the first season, and proves to be a formidable foe. Rumours * Gothel has been around since the beginning of time. This was proven false; Gothel is from 9th century Germany. Appearances TV Prose * ''The Haunting Melody'' * ''Mother's Day'' References Category:Twice Upon a Time Characters Category:Series 25 Characters Category:Series 26 Characters Category:Villains Category:London Characters Category:Main Characters Category:New York City Characters Category:Enchanted Forest Characters Category:Bookend Characters Category:Deceased Characters Category:Worldpoint Characters Category:Characters who appear in HUverse prose